I got version of the MAD comics about fifteen years ago, reprinted as "Humor in a Jugular Vein."

It's crazy, elaborate stuff. For decades the stories were only available, in B&W and chopped up, in mass-market-paperback sized volumes. The "Jugular Vein" comics were in color, and in the original size.

WANT

stefanjones:

It's crazy, elaborate stuff. For decades the stories were only available, in B&W and chopped up, in mass-market-paperback sized volumes. The "Jugular Vein" comics were in color, and in the original size.

I think offering #1 for free is kind of a gateway drug thing. My brother and I bought the original comics for ten cents apiece; they shaped (i.e. warped) our world-view forever. Any readers of the contemporary Mad Magazine? Is it still cool and funny, or has it lost the vibe? (Its less cool competitor back in the day, Cracked, now exists as a terrific webzine at http://cracked.com.)

In the universe I inhabit, neither Mad #1 nor Superman #1 nor Batman #1 is available free for the Kindle at amazon.com. Mad #1 is not for sale at any price, and Superman and Batman go for $9.60 apiece. How do I get to your universe?

I saw other early issues of Mad for sale at $1.99, but not #1, so I entered it as a search term and it popped up - at $0.00 cost. I grabbed it, along with #11 for $1.99. Only Mad #1 was listed for free... Batman #1 was $1.99 and Action Comics #1 (Superman) was $.99, all for the Kindle. I just checked and nothing's changed.

Thanks for the info, friend. My problem persists, but probably because I'm a Canadian. Amazon.com has always treated us like fourth-class citizens. (And amazon.ca is worthless, a calculated insult to all Canadians by some Canadian thief.) At least the version of MAD at Comixology works.

CRACKED used to be the Milhaus van Houton of kiddie humor magazines. It was earnest and tried really hard but never quite cut it. I read it (and CRAZY) but it was never up to MAD's standards. So, it is really uncanny seeing how CRACKED has become a diabolically smart and observant webzine.

The contemporary MAD is an odd mix of recognizable classics and stuff aimed at today's young'uns that whooshes past my ear. I simply don't know enough about tween / teen culture to know what they're mocking. The presence of slick ads is disconcerting.

If you want to see something uncanny: Netflix has 26 episodes of a MAD animated show that ran on Cartoon Network. It has cartoons based on Aragones and Don Martin strips that are astonishing. Also, Spy vs. Spy segments that are done by a rotating crew of animators.